Question

Luther Vandekampt purchased a basketball from a store and gave the clerk a $20 bill and a $5 bill and received $1.12 in change. If the sales tax rate in his community is 6.5%,

what was the selling price for the basketball before taxes?
$22.88

Answer 1

The selling price of the basketball before taxes, with a sales tax rate of 6.5%, is approximately $22.43, calculated by dividing the total amount paid ($23.88) by 1.065.

Step-by-step explanation:

The student wants to know the selling price of a basketball before taxes, given that Luther Vandekampt used a $20 bill and a $5 bill to pay for it and received $1.12 in change. The sales tax rate is 6.5%. To find the original selling price, we need to work backwards from the total amount paid including taxes.

First, we calculate the total amount Luther paid by subtracting the change from the amount he gave to the clerk:

$20 + $5 - $1.12 = $23.88 (total amount paid including tax).

Next, to figure out the selling price before tax, we need to divide the total amount by 1 + the sales tax rate as a decimal. With a tax rate of 6.5%, we have:

Selling price = $23.88 / 1.065.

Performing the division, we find the selling price before tax:

$23.88 / 1.065 ≈ $22.43. Therefore, the selling price of the basketball before taxes is approximately $22.43.